Friends of Sleeping Bear Dunes aids Park Service
From staff reports
The nonprofit Friends of Sleeping Bear Dunes works with the management and staff of Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore to plan and implement projects that the National Park Service is unable to do because of limited budget or staff. This year has been a banner year in terms of volunteer hours and funds provided to the Park, reports Friends of the Sleeping Bear.
Over 150 volunteers worked many hours keeping our beaches, trails and rivers clean and safe through the all-volunteer Adopt-A-Beach, Adopt-A-River, Adopt-A-Trail programs. The historic farm fields of Port Oneida were mowed again this year to maintain the historical agricultural landscape. Each year, the Friends works with Park staff and Preserve Historic Sleeping Bear to organize the Port Oneida Fair in August.
The Sleeping Bear Heritage Trail (SBHT) is the largest program managed by the Friends. Many do not realize that maintenance of the new trail is the responsibility of the Friends of Sleeping Bear Dunes — not the National Lakeshore. The Friends of Sleeping Bear Dunes work under the guidance of the Park management but all maintenance funds come from fundraising activities done for the SBHT – not from the Park Service budget, and all the maintenance work is being done by volunteers. Forty volunteers help the Trail Ambassador program on the SBHT. That includes grooming for cross-country skiing this winter.
From a financial standpoint, the Friends provided grants or purchased equipment for the benefit of the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore of almost $90,000, which includes over $34,000 used to purchase equipment and tools to maintain the SBHT (from the fundraising efforts of the SBHT Campaign Cabinet and TART).
The Friends is an all-volunteer organization, with a low overhead budget. About 95 % of the budget is used for projects that benefit visitors to the National Lakeshore. A wide variety of volunteer opportunities exist, providing residents and visitors with a lot of options when looking for a way to get involved and support the Park. Consider joining the team – either by volunteering or through a financial contribution.
For more information, visit www.friendsofsleepingbear.org.
